Ask any 10 live sound types whether a head-worn, lavalier, or handheld mic is the way to go, and you'll get 10 different opinions (not to mention that pastors can't seem to come to agreement on this either). If you reach the conclusion that a lav is the way to fly, you're still not finished with decisions. You still need to decide whether to use an omnidirectional or cardioid mic and then, of course, what brand and model. Countryman has recently introduced its B2D directional lavalier, and I spent a little time with one.
For the purposes of getting a listen to this mic straight up, with no coloration or interference from a wireless system, I was sent an evaluation unit hard-wired to XLR (list price from $570). I took it with me to church and had our worship director clip it on his shirt. I plugged it in and brought it up in our sound reinforcement system with flat EQ and no processing of any kind. I had him sing softly and in full voice, and also had him speak. I was impressed with the clarity right off the bat.
From a physical standpoint, the mic feels well constructed to me, albeit with a really slender wire. Certainly, a slender wire is preferable from an aesthetic standpoint—a lot easier to conceal— but always worries me a bit in terms of durability. But Countryman has always taken great care in terms of quality construction, and this mic is another example of this care. The cable break strength of the wire exceeds 45 pounds. It's very small—smaller than a match head, and is unobtrusive from an aesthetic standpoint, particularly considering the five color options (black, white, and three hues of skin-tone).
The B2D is available with three distinct sensitivity levels—6.0, 2.0, and 0.6mV/Pascal, yielding max SPL input of 120 dB, 130 dB, and 140 dB, respectively. It's useful to me to have such options at the mic stage—less concern over pads—by using the right mic.
Looking at the frequency response curves pub- lished by Countryman, the mic sounded a bit more midrangey to my ear than what I saw on the graph, but not by a huge amount. A little EQ scoop in the mids yielded a really pleasant signal with a high degree of clarity.
Since the B2D exhibits a hypercardioid pattern—Countryman calls it a directional mic— consistency in level is a minor concern, but the pattern here is not so tight as to result in wild swings in level as a pastor turns his or her head left and right. Maximum gain before feedback (GBF) is important in any sound reinforcement situation, and I found this mic to be a great compromise between GBF and a broad enough polar pattern to avoid inconsistent levels with a more animated pastor or vocalist.
Although the unit I evaluated was hard-wired to an XLR connector, Countryman makes detachable modular cables and connectors available, which I love since I'd much rather replace bits and pieces than an entire unit or lose the entire mic for several weeks for a repair. The mic I evaluated came with Countryman's excellent isolation clip, which made it very easy for me to get the mic positioned exactly the way I wanted it with my worship director. If redundant mic'ing is important to you, a double clip is available as well.
Bottom line, I'm very impressed with the clarity of this mic. I found it very easy to use—clipped it on, scooped the mids ever so slightly, and had a clear, full vocal in my mix. These are definitely worth a listen.
